A son's experience
by Kerex
Summary: A boy's life is about to change and his greatest journey, about to start.


A son's experience

Chapter 1:

The days were getting longer, the sun getting lower in the sky for each that passed. The sea of grass outside slowly, but surely, turned into amber waves of grain. Each wave crashed against the sturdy house as the wind picked up. A window was open on the front side of the house and the breeze that went through was starting to have that winter chill that comes along this late in the season. It smelled of barley and maple from the trees beyond the horizon. In the window, lay a small boy who could only dream about what it was like beyond those golden waves of grain that seemed to cover the entire world. This boy didn't know it yet, but his entire world as he knew it was going to change.

Although peculiar for a boy like this, his name was Magnix. Magnix grew up on a small farm with his father. While his home was small, Magnix's heart was big. He would offer any visitors anything he had in order to help them feel more at home. He was eleven years old and growing fast. Being eleven, Magnix had more responsibilities than others at his age. He had to help his father with the farm work, working the fields, tending the livestock. Magnix had already developed broadened shoulders and a stout face at this age. He was closing in on his father's height. He would probably be there in the next few years or so. His eyes were innocent, curious even, but could pierce the very depths of your soul if you let them. He always chose to wear a straw hat because his father does, even inside the house. His wardrobe wasn't big; maybe 2 or three changes of robes and work wear. On the farm, Magnix often had to think out of the box when it came to difficult problems. More often than not, that is how he has been able to live out there with his father.

Now, Magnix's father was one of those people that preferred to keep to himself than associate with other people. There were few people that he actually bothered to carry out full-length conversations with. As a result of this, he was forced into a life of solitude. On the bright side however, he preferred it that way. He can live in peace and work on his barley fields for a living. Sadly however, about 10 years prior, he lost his wife to a sickness he cannot fathom. His only real memory of her lives on in his son. Magnix's father chooses to dress in a loose fitting bleached vest with a worn pair of overalls that somehow always looked dusty, even when they are wet. He wears a sun bleached straw hat that has a chip in the side of it. Ever since the day when he had to bury his wife, he has not been happy about anything in his life. He hasn't spoken about it either, not even to his own son.

Night has fallen since earlier this day. Everything was abnormally quiet during the night. Magnix did not like the night just for that reason. He silently wished it could be daytime all the time as he lay in his bed, thinking about the events of the week prior to this night. Bored, he rolled over to his side and looked out the window. The moon was bright tonight. Magnix smiled; at least he had the comfort of sight with him. Rubbing his eyes, he slowly drifted off to sleep.

A muffled voice filled his dreams. Light scratched at his eyelids. A big hand grabbed his shoulder and started to shake him. The voice spoke again, this time more clear. It was his father. Magnix's eyes shot open; the light burned his corneas and blinded him for a second. When his father told you to get up, you got up. After he counts to three, he leaves you be but comes back about 20 seconds later with a rather loud whip.

"I'm up!" Magnix blurted out as his father turned around.

His father turned around to face him and smirked.

"I knew you would get up," he jeered," four times in a row over the past week has got to have had some impact. It almost ended up being that if you hadn't gotten up, I would have to experiment with 'new' methods of waking you up." His eyes flashed.

Rubbing his eyes, Magnix saw his day started just after dawn broke. Looking at his father now, he saw a proud man that knew what he was doing. The straw hat on his head, tipped forward as usual to shield his eyes from the light blazing through the window. Hopping off of his bed, he heard the familiar creaking of the floorboards under his weight

"So, what are we doing today?" Magnix asked his father.

"Well, we are going to be doing something different today for you." His father responded.

"What exactly?" Magnix asked again, this time more curious.

"If I told you, then it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it." His father answered wryly. "Now get up, get dressed and meet me outside as fast as you can."

After that, he walked out the door without another word. Magnix was now extremely curious. What did his father have planned for him today? He wouldn't have said anything like this if it were just regular day to day stuff. No. It had to be something more than that. He tore off his clothes and put his work clothes on in a hurry. He rushed downstairs and out the back door.

Magnix saw his father standing about 10 yards away from the back door. In front of his father lay an assortment of items. The items he had to choose from were from as simple as the tools he used everyday out in the field with his dad to things he had never laid eyes on before in his life.

"Come here my son," his father beckoned, "choose anything here that catches your eye."

"Why?" Magnix asked warily.

With a sigh, his father looked at him and explained, "This will help me understand what I need to do in the near future. So go on now, choose something."

Stumped, Magnix stared blankly at the assorted objects in front of him. How? He asked himself.

"How do I choose father?" Magnix asked with obvious confusion.

"Just choose something son, there are no wrong choices here." His father reassured.

Magnix, now somewhat confident started to look through the items. His eye caught several things; none however drew enough attention to rip his eyes fully away from one item. A wooden staff; just a little taller than the height of his father. Magnix's father followed his son's glistening eyes to the staff and quickly picked it up.

"This staff has history, are you sure you choose this?" His father asked warily.

Eyes still glistening at the sight of the staff, Magnix answered, "Yes, I'm sure."

"Okay then, we shall train you with this." His father popped the staff up and let it rest on his shoulder.

Magnix's ripped his eyes from the staff and looked at his father. Train? Train for what? Why now? What was going on?

"Your first challenge is to get this staff from me without actually touching it." His father nestled the staff on his shoulder. "If you don't succeed by sunrise the next day, then you will get no food for your efforts."

"How am I supposed to get that staff from you if I can't even touch it?" Magnix asked.

"That is for you to find out my son." His father responded. "I cannot help you in this matter"

His father turned around and walked away towards the barn. Magnix started thinking about what his father said. How to remove something without touching it. Maybe he thought he could knock it out of his father's hand with another instrument. Magnix leaned down and picked up a heavy mallet that needed two hands to carry it from the pile of tools in front of him. He swung it in front of him and almost toppled forward from being unbalanced. Maybe not he thought. He dropped the mallet and picked up a small hammer, easily usable with one hand. Maybe he could craft something to knock the staff out of his father's hands. He looked in his father's direction only to see that he was nowhere to be found. Astounded, Magnix looked around in all directions without any luck. How did this happen, he thought, he was there just a second ago.

"Never take your eyes off of your enemy son." His father announced. "It could have serious consequences."

Magnix was stunned. How did his father get behind him so fast without him noticing? His father poked Magnix in the back of the head with the staff hard enough to leave a small welt in the spot. Magnix cried out in surprise and whirled around.

"Never take your eyes off of me son." His father stated and slowly walked away.

Magnix gripped the small hammer tighter, he would have to think hard about how he was going to do this.

Chapter 2:

The night air was surprisingly warm considering the fall season was just ending. The rafters of the barn were a great hiding place for Magnix as he waited silently for his father to come by. His father to his knowledge was still out and about on the farm with that staff. He would eventually have to come into the barn for something.

After about half an hour or so, his father eventually comes into the barn to check on the livestock. Magnix takes the opportunity to lower himself from the rafters behind his father, all the while carrying the two handed mallet from earlier. Magnix starts to swing the mallet around, gaining momentum as he readies himself for a confrontation with his father. He now lunges forward with the mallet but is stopped dead. His father reached behind himself with the staff and blocked the full force of the blow.

"Hello son, I just came out here to attach some of these bells to the top of the pole." His father remarked. "I thought you might need a little bit of help finding me."

Pulling the mallet away, Magnix studied his father momentarily. He still had his back turned.

"I'm not done yet." Magnix insisted.

Striking at his father again with the mallet, Magnix found the same result every time. However, Magnix was able to force his father to step back from the unrelenting assault.

Good it was working, he thought, just a little bit further now.

"Son, there is no point to you trying to hit me with that mallet over and… Oomph."

In slow motion almost, the staff clattered to the floor and so did his father's straw hat. Thier original handler was now dangling 10 feet in the air. Magnix had the biggest grin on his face, he had just caught his father in his trap. He had worked on the net trap for a little while into the night before his father came in. He had nailed a couple of support boards to the rafter's overnight to hold the weight of his father once he got caught in the trap. The trap was simple and blended into the background perfectly. He took some fishing net he found and tied it up to a pulley system with an ordinary rope that was found in the barn. Then he covered the net with sawdust and hay from the barn floor. To set it all off, he put a pressure sensitive trigger in the middle of the net that would release the barrels of ale from the rafters tied to the end of the rope.

Hanging upside down in the net and with the blood rushing to his head, his father managed to spit out, "Congratulations, you did it. Now get me down from here."

"Okay." Magnix replied hastily still with a huge smile on his face.

Magnix cut the rope and his father tumbled to the floor.

His father stood up brushing himself off, "Alright, I think that this is it for the night. Let's go inside, get something to eat and go to bed."

Magnix thought he saw what looked like a smile flash across his fathers normally rock solid features. Maybe it was a trick of the eye he thought. His father never smiles. Looking around now, Magnix saw that their scuffle created a mess in the barn. He would have to clean up the place later. His father turned around and walked out the barn door. Magnix scooped up the staff he left behind and felt it for the first time. There was something… special about this staff, he couldn't place his finger on it figuratively but he knew it was there. Magnix quickly followed his father out of the barn and toward the house.

Magnix rolled over in his sleep and instinctively reached for the staff next to his bed. Its touch soothed him somewhat while he slept. He started to dream again…

Magnix's eyes shot open. It was a new day once again and he would not let his father wake him up. Slowly leaving his bed, he moved carefully across the floor to keep the floorboards from creaking. He wanted to stay absolutely silent as he left his room and ventured down the hallway towards his father's room. He found the whip dangling from a nail pounded into the wall. He removed it carefully and started down the hall again.

Magnix opened the door to his father's room ever so gently, hoping that it would not wake him up. The door creaked. Magnix stopped dead. Snoring came from the other side of the door so he was confident that he had not woken up his father. Magnix walked into his father's room, minding his step in case he accidentally finds a board that creaks. Smiling now, Magnix unfurled the whip, leaned back, and cracked it as hard as he could. Only that was not the brightest thing to do. The whip ended up whipping Magnix right in the back and opened up a small gash. The sound from the whip however was nothing to the sound that Magnix screeched in surprise.

Startled by all of the commotion, his father shot upright immediately not knowing what he was going to find standing in his room. Seeing his son, he relaxed immediately but became concerned when he saw Magnix trying to reach something on his back.

"What's wrong son?" His father asked, still unsettled by recent events.

"I… I think you know what happened." Magnix answered, teary eyed from the pain in his back.

"Well then, let's go fix you up." His father stated, taking Magnix with him to the bathroom to bandage him up.

After he was all bandaged up, Magnix laid down in his bed, a bit of blood soaking through the bandages already into the mat. His sneak attack on his father didn't go as well as it could have. It could've been worse he supposed. His father came into the room shortly after and stood in the doorway. He looked at his son with a strange look.

"What are you doing lying down?" He asked. "We have work to do."

Confused, Magnix sat up.

"What do you mean 'why am I lying down'? Didn't you see what you were bandaging up?" Magnix asked back in a somewhat disoriented manner.

"Oh that's nothing, it's just a scratch. You will be fine." His father threw out nonchalantly. "Now come on, get moving, we have work to do."

With a groan, Magnix pulled himself from his bed and walked downstairs to the kitchen. His dad made a great breakfast. The two sat down and ate with each other but didn't speak a word. After breakfast, they went outside to work in the field and tend to the livestock. Towards the end of the day, Magnix noticed that his father's attitude had shifted. He was more alert and vigilant, and for good reason. Wild animals and gangs of bandits liked to hide out in the dense growth of trees at the edge of the barley fields. At night, they chose to take from the field's barley to try and create ale for themselves. They had harassed his father multiple times for the land, the barley and his income. His father had not given in though. He had fought off entire gangs of about 20 plus bandits on his own. Now, his father's head perked up. Magnix was unsure of what his father saw or what he heard so he went out to investigate.

On the horizon, a mirage of lights emanated from the tree line. Each individual orb of light pulsed violently in the shadows of the forest. Magnix suddenly realized that each light was a torch. It was a mob that was coming this way.

"Magnix!" His father yelled. "Go inside and grab the staff. Then come out here and give it to me."

"Okay, I'll be right back." Magnix yelled back to his father.

Sprinting into the house, Magnix flew past the kitchen and the living room. He knew that if he didn't act fast his father wouldn't have a chance against so many people. Running upstairs and into his room, Magnix looked in the spot where the staff should have been and it wasn't there. Where was it!? He threw up his bed, tore open his closet and looked in every corner of his room.

"Magnix!" His father yelled again from outside, this time more frantic.

Magnix ran down the hallway and into his father's room and to his surprise, it was used to keep the door propped open. Grabbing it, Magnix ran down the stairs, missing two or 3 steps at a time and tumbled out the door towards his father. Magnix saw that the mob was much closer than it had been before and they had set the surrounding fields on fire. His father was looking at him, waving his arms somewhat frantically.

"Magnix!" He yelled again with complete urgency.

Magnix picked himself up off the ground and ran towards his father with the staff. By the time he got there, the mob had moved another 100 yards or so toward the pair. Putting the staff in his father's hands, Magnix looked into his father's face. Surprised by the look, Magnix stumbled backwards. His father was smiling. At a time like this, Magnix could not understand why he was smiling.

"Thank you my son, now go. Hide yourself anywhere you think these people may not find you." His father said with a smile.

"But…" Magnix started.

"Go now son! They are getting closer." His father stated. "Leave this to me, I can handle it. I promise."

Magnix stared at his father for a moment. He was unsure that he was going to see him again.

"Okay, be sure to be back as soon as you are done." Magnix replied.

Turning around, Magnix ran back towards the house. He knew a great place to hide in a situation like this. He had discovered he could hide a small crawl space in the attic if he was careful about it. He kept all sorts of special things there. As he was running back to the house, Magnix stole a glimpse of his father. His father's back was turned to him but he was standing proud and tall against the mob before him. He was holding the staff defensively in case of a random attack. Magnix took a moment now to realize that this may be the last time he sees his father.

Chapter 3:

Now tucked away in the crawlspace in the attic, Magnix now had to wait for his father to return. It was stressful, and he hated waiting. He never knew if his father was going to come back beaten and bloody, or not at all. Magnix hated that he couldn't be out there with his dad. He wanted to be out there in case his dad got attacked, and then he could at least try to do something.

Magnix was tired of sitting in the same spot waiting for his father. He pulled himself out of the crawl space and went to the window in the front of the house. The grasses and barley outside still burned, but the fire had not reached the house yet. He looked to where his father was. He saw that his father was still standing in the same place. He was talking to somebody from the mob. Magnix wished he knew what they were saying. After about a minute more of talking, his father turned around and headed back towards the house. Magnix was somewhat surprised to see this. Who was it that he was talking to? Why was his father coming back? What did the two talk about?

Magnix ran downstairs and into the kitchen. His father came in through the back door. He looked dismayed and out of focus. Something had happened out there. Magnix looked outside and the mob was dispersing.

"Magnix, go get some buckets. We have to put out those fires before they destroy more of the fields." His father ordered solemnly.

"What happened out there father?" Magnix asked, aware of his father's current state.

"Just… go son." His father managed as he sat down at the table.

Magnix didn't press anymore, his father would tell him when he was ready. Magnix hurried to the barn and grabbed some buckets. Fortunately the blaze hadn't reached a huge size. Magnix took some time and put it out. He made his way back towards the house and inside. Magnix wasn't expecting to see what he saw when he walked in. Something was wrong. His father was still sitting at the table with his head resting in his palm.

"Son, we have to go outside now." His father started. "We have to do this fast."

His father stood up abruptly and walked to the front door, he picked up the staff leaning against the wall and headed outside with a quickening pace.

"Come." He ordered urgently.

Magnix took off after his father out into the field of grass. The sun was just starting to reach the height of mid afternoon. Magnix covered his eyes from the blazing light. The air outside was colder than it had been earlier. There was almost no wind now and everything was silent except for the moving of grass and wheat in their paths. It was truly eerie outside. Magnix's father stopped without warning and Magnix ran into the back of him. His father turned around and presented the staff to Magnix.

"Take it." He said with a glance from the staff to his son.

Magnix nodded and took the staff from his father. Out of nowhere, his father threw a sucker punch that caught Magnix in the stomach. He was off guard.

"Block me!" He shouted at Magnix.

His father threw another punch and this time Magnix was ready. Magnix pulled the staff up, slapped it against his father's wrist and pushed the arm away from his body as best he could. Without hesitation, his father brought his knee up to meet his son's chest. Magnix saw this and jumped back, using the staff as a counter balance.

"What are you doing? I said to block me!" His father shouted again.

His father charged again and Magnix was more ready. Everything else was moving slower while he was moving at about the same speed. His father readied a right hook; Magnix angled the staff to the right. His father swung and Magnix slapped the staff against his father's wrist again and pushed it away. His father's knee came up fast but not fast enough. Magnix had to think fast, he could not block this blow even if he tried. In a split second, he had it. He hooked the bottom of the staff under his father's knee and pulled up as hard as he could. His father lost balance and fell on his back. Magnix readied the staff again. His father started to get up. Something in Magnix immediately knew what he had to do. Magnix thrust the tip of the staff into his father's chest and kept him pinned down.

"I'm sorry father but sometimes a good defense relies on a good offense." Magnix managed, breathing very hard.

"Don't apologize son. You just completed my second challenge faster than I had expected. You are a natural at this." His father enthusiastically remarked.

Suddenly he just started laughing. Magnix removed the staff from his father's chest.

"I almost don't think I need to teach you much more about this." His father joked.

Magnix now got a little annoyed.

"What are you training me for? You never answered my question." Magnix asked.

His father sighed. He looked at Magnix with eyes that seemed to be made of steel.

"I am training you because one day, I might not be here and you will have to fend for yourself." His father answered.

Magnix didn't understand fully what that meant but he had a bad feeling about it. His father got up from lying on his back and smiled at his son.

"It's still bright out, lets get some work done." His father said with some enthusiasm.

Apparently, knocking him on his back put him in a good mood. Right then, a wind picked up and a warm breeze swept across the fields, making the grass and barley dance to its rhythm. Magnix smiled at this, he didn't like it when everything was still and quiet.

The two spent the rest of the day working on the farm. Tending livestock, gathering water, and clearing fields of the wasted vegetation from the fires. All in all, it was a good day. They eventually finished and walked in the front door. Magnix turned around in the entrance and looked at the horizon. He could still see some of the lights from the flickering fires of the bandits that had come by earlier. The setting sun created shadows from the tips of the trees all along the tree line that looked like claws, reaching and grasping away more and more of the fields as time went on. Magnix watched the claws reach his doorstep and closed the door. His father had already pulled out some food and started to cook it in a pan over the fireplace in the kitchen. Magnix sat down at the small table and watched his father carefully prepare the meals. Eventually his father finished and sat down at the table with Magnix with the food. The two silently enjoyed their meal and then headed upstairs. Magnix was about to enter his room when he looked down the hall towards his father. His father was watching him enter his room.

"Good night son, get some sleep. It will be a big day tomorrow." His father hinted.

Magnix looked at his father and nodded. He walked into his room and lay in his bed. His head was swirling about all of the events of the day. He couldn't close his eyes for a long time. The sun was completely gone now; there was no trace of it. All that remained in its wake was a pitch blackness of the night and dead silence. Magnix hated nights like these, they always make him feel as if everything wrong in the world was waiting for him to close his eyes.

Chapter 4:

Magnix rolled over in his sleep, releasing his iron grip on the staff. The night was still young outside his bedroom window, the eerie silence still haunting his thoughts, his dreams. Magnix's nostrils flared and his mouth curved into a smile as a pleasant memory came up.

Magnix woke up again earlier than his father. He was glad that the sun was out in full force again. The wind picked up, this time the wind was even cooler than before. Winter was drawing close. Magnix rolled out of bed and changed. He went downstairs to eat some breakfast. After breakfast, he opened up the front door and looked outside. The claws of darkness were still there but were receding as fast as the sun rose higher into the sky.

"Perfect, isn't it." His father mused.

"Wahh! When did you get down here?" Magnix asked with surprise.

"I told you to always keep an eye on me didn't I?" His father winked.

His father always did that. Magnix should be used to it by now but his father would find new ways every time to startle him by showing up out of nowhere. With a sigh, Magnix turned back to the fields and drank it all in. It was so peaceful.

"Yeah." Magnix answered softly.

The two stood there for a moment, gazing at the beauty of the morning sunrise.

"Alright, lets go." His father stated.

"Where are we going?" Magnix asked.

"It's a secret, now go grab your staff." His father remarked.

His father walked out the front door. Magnix hurried up the stairs to his room and grabbed the staff from next to his bed. Magnix hurried back down the stairs. On his way outside after his father, Magnix thought about the staff. How did it get into his room? How did he know where to find it? Earlier, his father told him to go get 'your' staff. Magnix had never heard his father address the staff as his before. Did that really mean that it was his? Magnix quickened his pace out the front door. His father was some ways off into the distance. It looked like he was crossing over the burnt parts of the field that the mob destroyed yesterday. Magnix followed his father, coming after him in a slight jog. His father stopped at the tree line and appeared to be waiting for him. Magnix quickened his pace. Magnix eventually arrived at his father's side.

"Come now, we have to go into the forest." His father gestured.

His father walked into the forest through the thick underbrush. Magnix followed suit and came out on the other side into a small opening in the forest wall. The sun shone through the canopy to make the surrounding look more luminescent. There was no breeze here but a variety of sweet smells plugged Magnix's nose to compensate for the lack of. Magnix looked around and could not find his father.

"Over here." A voice yelled a ways off into the trees.

Magnix continued through the brush and found himself face to face with his father. His father moved away from him by about three feet. He then looked at Magnix strangely.

"Move." He ordered.

Magnix looked down and found himself standing on a trap door covered in leaves and other droppings from the canopy above. He stepped off of it with care. His father moved forward and found a hidden iron latch that locked the door, incase it was ever found. His father took a special key out from his shirt and opened the latch. His father then grabbed the handle and pulled up on the door, sliding off all of the debris that kept the door hidden in the process. A deep hole appeared before Magnix and his father. The hole lead into the ground like a walkway. The wave of air that emanated from the cave was stagnant. Magnix looked down into the passageway, it was as black as night for as far as he could see.

"Come down here son, I have something to show you. But first…" His father explained.

His father reached down into the hole and into a crevice. He pulled out some fire lightning materials. His father bundled together some sticks and some tinder. He took some flint he had from the supplies and struck it once into the tinder. The tinder was set ablaze almost instantly.

"We need light." His father finished.

His father swung the newly lit torch around, testing the durability of the flame. He turned and started down the passageway. Magnix peered down the passageway and shuddered. He did not like dark, quiet places. Setting his own fears aside, he wandered down the passageway after his father. His father had been lighting torches on the walls along the way to make the way easier to see. Magnix appreciated it greatly. After a walk of a eighth of a mile or so, the two came across an underground chamber.

"Welcome to the brewery." His father stated with a smile. "I knew that one day you would be ready for this."

Magnix looked around, a skylight lit the room, even though not much light came through. There were barrels on the walls, there were giant wooden vats here and there, there were pouches on a wall hanging above scattered yet test tubes, and there were ceramic jugs that were corked lined up everywhere. Magnix didn't know what to think. Why in the world was there a brewery here? Why did his father want to show it to him? Before Magnix could think anymore, his father walked away from his side and towards the beakers.

"You are probably wondering why this is here and possibly why you didn't know about." His father started. "Well, I am going to tell you. Take a seat son."

He pointed at a nearby chair. Magnix pulled up the chair in front of his father. He wondered what he was going to hear. His father looked at him and sighed.

"Are you ready?" He asked.

Magnix nodded.

"Ok, it all begins a long time ago, during the 10,000 Year War. Do not worry about the event just yet, you will find out much more about it at a later time. What is important is what happened. Long ago, your ancestors stumbled across a new way to… enhance yourself and others in a manner that may seem a bit odd."

His father gestured around the room.

"This is a brewery. It is designed to cultivate, process and perfect ale. Now as you may or may not know, ale, when taken too much of, will impair judgment and motor skills. Long ago, your ancestors found a way to keep this from happening and surprisingly, increase the physical, and mental attributes of the consumer rather than degrade them through the consumption of this everyday beverage. It was through mere accident that this happened. One of your ancestors, your grandfather, 17 generations back, happened to tip some medicinal herbs into the brew. The herbs upset the chemical balance of the brew and almost instantly burst into flame. Before the flame died down, he reached into the fire with a scoop and pulled out some of the liquid before all of it evaporated away. His hand was burned severely doing this. After letting the brew sit for a little bit, he came back and decided to test it. He drank the brew and his hand returned to its original state before the fire burned it. Ever since, his legacy and his line has continued through the ages, all the way down to you my son. Every single member of his line has experimented with the brew in order to find new uses and new properties that have not yet been explored. As of right now, there are so many different recipes for so many different effects that I do not know about, they would have probably made me go insane."

His father took a deep breath, exhausted from speaking for so long. Magnix's head was whirling by now. So many details about the history of this craft were just explained, his family history even. Magnix needed a moment to wrap his head around all of this. Unfortunately, he wouldn't get one.

"And now we come to you, my son." His father continued.

Magnix's father looked down to the ground. Slowly, he took a knee in front of Magnix. After a moment, he looked up into his sons face.

"Magnix, are you ready to take up the title, Brew Master?" His father asked with a dedication in his eyes.

Magnix looked back into his father's eyes. He knew what he had to do.

"Yes, I am."

Chapter 5:

His arm hung of the bed. The tip of his finger just barely touched the smooth, spherical surface of a small ceramic jug. The jug hung loosely from a string tied to the tip of the staff. It was still dark outside, the moon decided to come out from behind the clouds to shine its light into the room. Magnix dreamed once more.

Magnix listened to his father intently for the next hour or so. His father disclosed the secrets of the family profession and taught him how to brew ale. Magnix understood that as long as you get the basics right, anything you add in, even anything you use to brew the beer would affect the quality and the performance of the ale. Magnix was no expert and he needed practice with this sort of thing. His father took one of the jugs off of a nearby wall. After preparing it with the basic ingredients to make ale, he took some string and tied it tightly to Magnix's staff.

"This is just for starters Magnix, I will let you experiment more and more as time goes on." His father said, smiling proudly at his son.

"Thank you." Magnix managed still in awe of everything that he had heard.

This was still a lot for Magnix to take in. He still didn't understand the basic concept of this craft. He understood the history of it just fine, just not how it worked. Speaking of history, his father mentioned something about a war… Before Magnix could think anymore, his father pulled him over to one of the vats to show him something.

"Here, take your staff and start to stir this brew." His father gestured at the pool of golden liquid.

Magnix obeyed and held onto the top part of the staff. Magnix plunged the staff in by a reasonable amount and began to stir.

"This is a special recipe that I have been working on for a long time. Come to think of it, I started working on this right after you were born." His father explained.

Magnix noticed his head drop a little bit.

"I started working on this for your mother and I. Sadly, she is no longer with us. She was a great lady, you would have loved her as much as she loved you…" His father's voice broke a bit. "But the past is the past and we can't do anything about it now. Just remember this Magnix. In your life, you have to react, instead of acting first. You have to be the water that flows around a rock. The water does not push the rock out of it's way, it merely goes around it. Use this way of thinking everyday. If you set your mind to a task, and you fail, then believe you went about it the wrong way and try again. This will make your life a whole lot simpler in the future Magnix. Trust me."

Magnix stared at his father for a moment, he couldn't comprehend why his father was telling him all of this, but he would remember it. His father straightened up.

"We must leave here now son." His father calmly said.

Magnix nodded. He pulled the staff out of the golden brew and followed his father out of the brewery. The two came back up the passageway from where they came in. At the entrance, sunlight spilled over into the hole, lighting the way somewhat more. This calmed Magnix a bit. They exited the hole and were immediately blinded by the mid day suns rays. They were in there for longer than Magnix had thought. He was glad to be out of there. The light of the mid day sun gave birth to a wondrous variety of sounds and colors in the forest clearing. Closing the hatch behind him, the hinge voicing its annoyance, his father stepped out and smiled proudly at his son. He then covered the trap door with some leaves and debris from the forest floor; there was plenty around due to the changing of the seasons.

"It would be unfortunate if anyone were to find this place. I keep this all locked up for good reason. This would be devastating if put in the wrong hands. Now come my son, we have to get back to the farm to work." His father stated.

"Just a moment." Magnix called back to his father.

Magnix saw a bush with some berries still ripe on it. He decided that this might be a good time to put the jugs to use. He hurried over to the bush, plucked a handful of berries, opened the cork, plopped them inside and re-corked the ceramic jug. Magnix stood up and ran back to his father. The two head back out through the underbrush and back out into the open fields of barley and grass. From this point on until the end of the day, it was business as usual. At least until later that is.

The suns golden rays still lit the field outside; the sky accommodated the sun by turning itself into a mirage of oranges and pinks. It was the perfect ending to a very confusing day. However, Magnix grew uncomfortable as the hungry claws of darkness started to once again consume the lit part of the field they were working in. Off into the distance, 2 figures appeared from the tree line. The pair just stood there, looking towards the farm, just watching, and waiting. Magnix would notice them occasionally while he worked in the fields with his father. At one point, Magnix looked up to see if they were still there. They were nowhere to be seen. Magnix had no doubt that his father knew about the pair but decided to ask anyway, just to be sure.

"Did you-" Magnix started.

His father was upright and scanning his surrounding frantically.

"Yes now hush." His father interrupted.

Magnix wasn't sure what was going on. He decided to ignore the bad feeling that was in his gut and continued to cut down and bundle the barley. His father however chose not to.

"Magnix, let's go inside, now."

His father dropped his tools and grabbed Magnix by the sleeve. Surprised, Magnix somehow managed to drop his tools faster than his father and pick up his staff. His father pulled Magnix along faster than he could run. Something very bad had to be happening for his father to act like this. The two got to the front door and his father stopped dead.

"What are you-" Magnix stopped dead.

The pair was inside their house, sitting at the table. Both were hooded, Magnix could not see their faces at all. One looked to be about the size of his father, if not bigger. The other was more around Magnix's size, but he carried an unconcealed dagger at his side. Who were these people? How had they made it all the way from the tree line, to his table without him or his father noticing? Magnix looked up at his father, confused to no end by this. His father stood there and looked at the intruders. He was not surprised in the least that they showed up. In fact he seemed to know them.

"It has been a long time." The big one spoke with a deep tone.

Magnix looked back towards their intruders and noticed that they were uneasy. The little one gripped his dagger tighter. It almost seemed as though he was smiling. Magnix was uneasy as well. If they knew his father, then there may not be any reason to worry. Magnix however did not want to take a risk with these two. He didn't know what they might be up to. Magnix gripped his staff tighter, the ceramic jugs on the end bouncing a bit. His father still had not let get of his sleeve just yet.

"It has Judonbo." His father replied. "Magnix, go upstairs and do not open your door for anything for the rest of the night."

"But-" Magnix started.

"Just do it." His father cut him off sharply

His father let go of his sleeve. Magnix straightened himself up. He looked up at his father again. His father looked back down at him and smiled.

"Everything will be alright son, I promise." His father reassured. "Now go."

Looking back toward the intruders, Magnix kept an eye on the one with the dagger. A feeling in the pit of his stomach told him not to trust him for any reason. Magnix started towards the staircase on the other side of the house. Magnix moved slowly, glancing between the two figures in his kitchen. He neared the doorway to the next room and the small one spoke.

"Don't worry kid, your father will be fine." He had a deeper voice too but not so much as the big one.

Magnix noticed that he jostled the dagger at his side after he said that. Magnix wasn't entirely sure that he meant that. With one last look towards his father, Magnix exited the room. He wasn't sure if this was going to be the last time he saw his father. Not too much unlike the other times. Magnix continued up the stairs at a quickened pace and into his room. He shut the door behind him. Magnix sat down on his bed. Magnix propped his staff against the wall next to his bed. He was unsure of what was going on. But he had to know.

Chapter 6:

With the end of his slumber on the horizon, Magnix shut his eyes tighter and sought another memory to dream about. Uneasy, Magnix felt for his staff again. He gripped it tight as his dreams carried him off into his past.

Magnix had been waiting on his bed for what seemed to be forever. The voices of his father and the newcomers resonated throughout the house. The voices were muffled and soft. It took a keen ear to pick up the noises. Magnix could tell that whatever they were talking about, they wanted to keep secret. He couldn't handle this. What were they talking about? Who were they? Why were hey here? What did they want with his father? Why now? Magnix became more and more curious as each minute ticked by. Frustrated, Magnix got up off of his bed and went to his window. He looked off into the distance; the claws of darkness reached up greedily to swallow up the sun. Magnix shuddered, hated the sight of that. Now that the darkness settled into every nook and cranny of the land surrounding the farm, Magnix felt uneasy. The wind had stopped and everything was getting colder. Everything was quiet. Magnix stepped away from the window. The voices downstairs still retained their volume. Magnix's curiosity and his uncomfortable ness with the night started to drive him insane.

Magnix had to know what they were talking about. He walked over to his door and pulled it open, ever so gently. The voices became a fraction clearer when he did that but were still muffled for the most part. He made his way down the staircase, carefully placing his weight on each step, to try to keep them from creaking. It was like a different home downstairs at night. Shadows stretched and distorted furniture and objects in the room to make them appear more sinister than they actually were. Magnix moved quickly out of the unsettling room and hugged the wall until right next to the kitchen door. He could hear them all talking, but not as loudly as he would have hoped. Magnix risked leaning more towards the edge of the door to get a better chance at hearing the conversation that was taking place. Leaning more towards the door, Magnix could hear it.

"-are you sure?" Magnix heard the smaller one ask.

"Yes, I am sure Gillian." His father sounded defeated.

"You may come to regret this." Judonbo whispered.

"This is horrible, something must be done." His father stated.

"It has been too long, time is of the essence." Gillian whispered.

"We must make preparations then." His father replied.

"What about the boy?" Judonbo asked.

Magnix's heart stopped for a second.

"He must… hang on." His father started.

Magnix heard a chair slide out and footsteps coming towards the entrance to the kitchen. His father appeared in the doorway. Magnix tried his best to stay quiet and hidden. His father looked into the corner where his son was.

"Magnix, I told you to go to bed and not to come out." His father said, irritated.

"I am sorry, it got dark out and I was curious" Magnix replied innocently.

His father sighed.

"Well go now, this time do not come out, no matter what." His father stated.

Magnix obeyed and started up the stairs. His father was standing in the doorway watching him, waiting for him to be in his room. As soon as Magnix was out of sight, he returned to the kitchen.

"How much do you think he heard?" Judonbo asked.

"Everything, I assume." His father answered. "Only time will tell though."

After that, everything was quiet. Not a sound left in the house. Not even the breath of the people in the kitchen was audible anymore. Magnix felt uncomfortable again and went the rest of the way up the stairs. He went into his room and closed the door behind him gently.

Slowly opening his eyes, Magnix shuts them quickly again expecting light to burn his retinas. He slowly opens them again; the light did not burn his eyes. There was no light from the sun. It was still dark outside. The room brightened with a luminescent blue glow. The moon must've just been released from behind the hold of the clouds. At least he could see now. Magnix rolled out of bed and went over to his window. He rubbed his eyes. The night air was still and cold. Everything was still silent. The air smelled stale. Magnix's eyes adjusted to the light. He looked out his window off into the distance towards the tree line. Magnix saw something curious not unlike earlier that day. At the tree line was a man. The man stayed at the tree line for a couple of seconds and then moved into the underbrush, totally vanishing from Magnix's sight. Puzzled, Magnix left his room. He wandered down the hall toward his father's room. He peered around the corner, expecting to see him sprawled out on his bed, fast asleep. His father was not there. Magnix wandered downstairs, the living room looked somewhat normal with the moonlight. He looked around the corner into the kitchen. His father was not there and neither were his peers. In fact, there was no sign of where he had gone to anywhere. Outside, the sun broke free from the grasp of darkness. The wind whipped up and carried a biting chill with it. The grass and barley danced, creating a vast amount of noise outside of the house. Magnix had come to a realization.

His father was gone… and he wasn't coming back.

Chapter 7:

It has been a week since his father has left. Food was running short. The winter season was just starting to bear its teeth. Magnix was lost. He didn't know what to do. He was still at a loss as to why his father left with no explanation. The house's firewood supply was running dangerously low. Magnix now had to ration his firewood. He was lucky there was some flint in the house. There was plenty of tinder outside now. All of the grass and barley had died due to the cold weather. Magnix looked out a window and saw ominous clouds on the horizon. This winter was going to be rough by the feel of things already.

One week later and things have not improved for Magnix. He now has no firewood and no food. He went outside to get some water from the well and found it completely frozen over. He was now at a make or break point in this dilemma. Wait for his father to come back, or risk his life trying to survive in a hostile environment. Magnix chose to risk himself. Rummaging through the house, Magnix could only come up with a few items to help him in his daring attempt at survival. An axe he could only carry with 2 hands. His staff, with all of the usefulness that it can achieve. And the flint he had been using for all this time. Before Magnix left the house, he went into his father's room and searched around. On his nightstand, he noticed something that he hadn't before. There was an oddly shaped key was lying there.

Instantly Magnix remembered his father using the same key to open up the brewery. He imagined it would come in handy at some point and swiped it. Magnix threw all of the little items he gathered into a pack he found in the attic. The pack was worn and fraying. Magnix couldn't fit much inside of it even if he tried. Magnix made straps for the pack that he tied on so he could tote the pack around on his back. Next came the axe. He took some more cloth and fashioned a longer strap for the axe. He tied the ends and looped it over his shoulder so that the axe fit snugly into the small of his back. He put the pack on his back and picked up his staff. As Magnix walked out the front door, he looked up into the sky. A wall of frothing gray clouds squeezed the air around Magnix. Looking away, Magnix set his sights on the tree line.

Now that he thought about it. This was one of the first times he had been out of the house without his father. Magnix started on his way towards the trees, passing field after field of dead vegetation. About halfway to the tree line, a snowflake fell from the sky above and landed on Magnix's nose. Magnix stopped and assumed the worst. Moving faster now, he made it to the tree line just as the snow started to pick up. He had to act fast if he was going to find it. Magnix burst through the underbrush into the clearing where it was hidden. The ground was already white with a thin layer of snow. Magnix took his staff and started to clear the leaves and debris away. As he was sweeping, his staff hit something solid. He had found the underground cave entrance to the brewery.

Magnix set his staff down, then took the key he found on his father's nightstand out of the pack. He fitted it into the lock, turned it to the right, and the latch dead bolting the door clicked open.

"Hey you!" A voice called from the trees behind him.

Magnix froze.

"What are you doing out here alone?" The person asked him.

Slowly standing up, Magnix carefully removed the pack with the supplies from his back, followed by the axe.

"I asked what you are doing out here alone." The voice called again.

Magnix picked up his staff and turned around to face this mystery person. A bandit stepped out from behind a tree. He was roughly a foot taller than Magnix, and built slightly heavier than him too.

"I cannot tell you that." Magnix answered.

The bandit stepped forward.

"What do you mean?"

"I told you that I can not tell you." Magnix responded.

"Well then, it looks like I am going to have to beat it out of you." The bandit stated.

The bandit unhooked a club from his back. He had an eager look in his eyes. It looked like he had been waiting to beat on someone smaller than him for a long time. Magnix took a defensive stance. He remembered his fathers words, 'Just remember this Magnix. In your life, you have to react, instead of acting first. You have to be the water that flows around a rock. The water does not push the rock out of it's way, it merely goes around it. If you set your mind to a task, and you fail, then believe you went about it the wrong way and try again'.

The bandit charged at him. Magnix reacted quickly. The bandit swung his club in a downward arc aimed at Magnix's head. Magnix, instead of blocking the club with his staff dodged nimbly to the right. Spinning his staff counter clockwise, Magnix pounded the top tip of the staff into the top of the club forcing it to hit the ground. This caused the bandit to lose his balance and stumble forward by about a step. Magnix saw an opening in the bandit's defense. Continuing the spin, Magnix brought the bottom part of his staff up to slam into the bandit's jaw. The bandit released his grip on his weapon and fell on his side. In this encounter, Magnix would not show mercy, his very survival depended on it. The bandit groaned on the ground and clutched his jaw. Looking up at Magnix, the bandit let go of his jaw and tried to get up. Magnix took this opportunity as well and struck at the bandits chin as hard as he could with the tip of his staff. He connected and the bandit fell back, unconscious.

Breathing hard again, Magnix took a moment to catch a breath. He looked over at the bandit after about a minute. He was still unconscious. Magnix decided he would feel bad if he just left him out in the cold like this. He dragged the bandit over to some nearby bushes and covered him with leaves and debris to keep him warm. Shouts were heard off in the distance. Magnix ran over, grabbed the bandit's club and tossed it over next to him. Magnix pulled on the handle to the trap door and found that it was frozen shut. Panicking, Magnix pulled harder on the handle. The ice suddenly released its iron grip on the door with a loud crack. He lifted the heavy door up enough to throw in all of his stuff. After that, Magnix slowly slipped into the passageway. Before he closed the passageway all the way, Magnix took one last look outside. It was snowing fairly hard now. The shouts were getting closer. Magnix closed the door and locked it from the inside.

Now inside, Magnix found that he had no reliable source of light to help him see his way down this dark, cold, silent tunnel. Fumbling around inside, he accidentally bumped into his staff. The jugs attached to it rolled into each other making a clanking noise. A few seconds later, a luminescent light emitted from each of the jugs. It was enough light to see for a ways into the tunnel. Magnix picked up his stuff and walked down the passageway towards the brewery. As he got closer, he found that the brewery was already lit up with the same luminescence from his jugs. It turns out that each of the ceramic jugs that lined the walls held the same quality when introduced to darkness. Magnix almost instantly became curious.

Now, after everything that has happened, a whole new life of adventure awaited Magnix.


End file.
